


Guarding His Master

by Merfilly



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Comfort, Other, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-20 03:04:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5989822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merfilly/pseuds/Merfilly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the aftermath of losing Tahl, Obi-Wan finds ways to keep the Dark at bay, knowing that his Master is haunted by failures and grief.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Guarding His Master

**Author's Note:**

> Read as platonic or pre-relationship, as you choose.

Qui-Gon Jinn was hard-pressed to find his calm, to let go of the pain in his soul and find his center. More often than not, he refused sleep, seeking meditation instead. Meditation opened him to the current flow of the Force, and mostly kept memories of the past where they belonged.

Some nights, sleep would not be denied.

As this was one such night, and the Force in their cabin grew eddied and thicker with the Darker emotions, Obi-Wan blinked his eyes open and looked across to the sweating, twitching Master. His heart ached for the elder man, and he decided to lean on his Master's generous offer, given when Obi-Wan was new to being his padawan, of sharing personal space when things were bad.

Qui-Gon had meant it for comfort to the then not-quite thirteen year old. Now, the barely-turned sixteen year old intended to turn it the other way around. Obi-Wan moved lightly, coming to the bed and settling on the edge as he hand reached for the fist Qui-Gon had made around the blanket.

"Master, I can't sleep," he said, with just a hint of worry as the touch jerked his Master from the nightmares. "May I?" 

Qui-Gon forced his mind to focus, but the dreams were so close, with Tahl calling to him to move faster, to find her. Overlapping that were Xanatos's words, taunting him as a failure, reminding him that Kenobi had tried to leave… and that ghost memory of the dream prompted Qui-Gon to lift the blanket wordlessly. There was no shame in asking for help, he'd told his padawan, time and again.

If Obi-Wan needed him, was willing to come to him, he would not turn the boy away, no matter that his padawan was growing up.

That his Master's breathing evened out soon after Obi-Wan rested his head on the other man's shoulder, and one large arm came up to shield him, made the padawan smile sleepily. His Master needed to sleep well, and Obi-Wan really didn't mind the rare privilege of sleeping so close to the center of his universe.

* * *

Qui-Gon looked at the sleeping padawan in the middle of his bed, frowning slightly. They'd made planet-fall, and the padawan had an entire room all of his own… yet Qui-Gon didn't have the heart to move him. He knew Obi-Wan had worked hard and had had every reason to fall asleep under the careful massage to ease abused muscles. 

With care not to wake him, Qui-Gon readied himself for bed, and laid on the other side. With his padawan close, he was fairly sure he would not slip into dreaming, and so let himself go to sleep.

When Obi-Wan briefly stirred later, he had to congratulate himself. As bad as the day had been, he just had not wanted Qui-Gon at the mercy of his nightmares. He'd have to remember that his Master wouldn't move him if he happened to fall asleep first.

* * *

Somehow 'negotiations' always turned into 'chase people halfway around a world', Obi-Wan noted, keeping watch over the Master. The rockfall they'd been caught in had bruised Obi-Wan, but Qui-Gon…

…Obi-Wan worried, because his Master had physically and Force-shielded them in such a way that Obi-Wan had been safe, and not so much the Master. It had taken so much out of Qui-Gon, and the stir of memories of the mines where Xanatos had orchestrated their near deaths was potent enough for Obi-Wan to feel it in the air.

"Stay with me, Master," he whispered, moving that much closer, one hand sliding to Qui-Gon's shoulder. The push of negative feelings and Darkness faded some, as Qui-Gon turned his face so the beard touch Obi-Wan's fingers where they rested on his shoulder.

* * *

"If you insist on being quite so acrobatic, my young padawan, can you not at least work on insuring there is something solid to land upon?" Qui-Gon asked, trying to make light of the situation as he wrapped bandages around the ribs. Obi-Wan saw the storms brewing in his Master's eyes, and knew that his near demise due to being pushed off-balance on a landing was weighing on him.

"Master, I just thought I'd discover if I could sprout wings like that species we heard tale of on our last mission," Obi-Wan offered innocently, to try and provoke something of a lighter mood. 

"If you had paid closer attention to that tale, you'd recall it was only the ones identified as female who could do so." Qui-Gon taped off the bandage, then did a physical examination of the rest of his padawan's bones, frowning at the cut that was seeping out of its first bandaging. "Lie back, my padawan," he said firmly. "And gently onto your side," he added, assisting with that maneuver so he could better work on the cut.

It took a bit before the Master was satisfied with the healing aids of bacta gel and bandaging, by which time Obi-Wan was more than a little out of it. The elder Jedi shifted to stand, and was surprised when his padawan reached out.

"Master… I'd be less restless, if you were close," Obi-Wan reasoned, aware that Qui-Gon would either refuse to sleep this night, or be tormented by his failures if he did sleep alone. "I don't want to slow us down, and a solid sleep would help."

"As you wish, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon told him softly, moving to share the smaller bed.

* * *

The room was still, but Qui-Gon knew he was not alone, even as his breathing evened out from the harsh rasp. He reached out with the Force, and knew it was his padawan… in arm's reach, but on the floor. He rolled onto his side to see the younger man, closing in on seventeen now, lying on a makeshift pallet of his outer robe and the blanket he was using for cover. Obi-Wan's eyes were open in the dimness of the room, and Qui-Gon had to give him a small, sad expression.

"For over a year, one thing after another, on the bad nights, you've been here," Qui-Gon said, keeping his voice low. "Usually on pretexts of needing to be close for your own sake. Or by conveniently falling asleep as we wind down."

Obi-Wan had the grace to look sheepish for his Master's theory, rather than to deny it. "Master, I only wished to return to you some of the care you have given me since taking me on as your padawan."

"You did not try to wake me this time," Qui-Gon stated, but the arch of his eyebrow invited Obi-Wan to explain.

"I hoped… and I may have done so wrongly, Master… that by letting you go through the dream, with me near, that you might finally have resolution of the pain it brings you." Obi-Wan slowly sat up, keeping the blanket around him. Qui-Gon shifted back on the bed, in obvious invitation, and the padawan moved to join him. That he was far too old for this, and Qui-Gon knew it, only added to the feeling of joy at being allowed to still get away with it.

"Before the anniversary of losing her," Qui-Gon said aloud, to the part Obi-Wan had not said.

"Master —"

Qui-Gon placed a finger over Obi-Wan's lips, silencing the apology that had been near. "All you have done for me, my padawan, I am grateful for. I do not think leaving my past to my dreams is … helpful for either of us. Tomorrow, we will tackle it a new way. Tonight, though, we will sleep."

"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan said, settling on the side of the bed that was still warm with Qui-Gon's presence. As he was drifting toward sleep, he did not protest at the arm sliding under his neck, and the fact he and his Master moved as one to be close, personal space forgotten, as their bond let them find peace, protected by one another.


End file.
